05.EMPLOYEE RELATION ISSSUES

INTRODUCTION

Figure1:Employee Relation Issues

According to earlier blogs, you understand the importance of maintaining positive employee relations for your company's success. However, you are surely aware from firsthand experience that there are numerous challenges that might arise in the job. These difficulties can quickly escalate into far larger problems.

Every business owner wishes to create a safe and secure workplace that promotes communication and fosters a supportive culture. When you know what typical concerns are, you can devise a plan. That plan is essential for keeping a happy and effective workplace.

                                            Source : You Tube(2020)

The following issues are not the only ones you will see, and you will likely deal with others:

1.Wages and pay raises

Figure2:Pay Raises

Insufficient compensation is a significant cause of dissatisfaction among employees. Business owners may face limitations in their payroll budget, making it challenging to provide across-the-board salary hikes during annual performance reviews. Compensation-related conflicts can be further complicated if employees were hired at a lower starting salary than their peers and have to remain at that level for an extended period. Additionally, a common issue in the workplace is the gender pay gap, where women are often paid less than men (loophealth,2023).

Do you find that issues often crop up around payday? Do employees tend to dispute the number of hours they worked or insist on overtime that you don’t think is accurate? Do you or your HR time find that you have to go over time sheets or attendance records to check details? To avoid federal wage and hour violations and to reduce the possibility that employees will dispute their paychecks, consider self-service timekeeping software that allows them to clock in and out from their smart devices. This encourages employees to keep track of and manage their own schedules by providing an efficient way to do so. It can also help with scheduling to prevent unnecessary overtime or to make sure the employees in the right pay grade perform the correct jobs(Una Lawlor,2017).

2.. Conflict resolution 

Figure3: Conflict Resolution

Conflicts are an inevitable part of any workplace, and if left unresolved, they can have adverse effects on employee morale and productivity. Managing conflicts between employees can be challenging for human resources personnel. Disagreements can arise over different work styles, personalities, personal issues, or opinions. And if not handled correctly, they can escalate into more significant issues that affect employee morale and productivity. Effective communication, mediation, and problem-solving skills are crucial for HR professionals and managers to resolve conflicts between employees and restore positive working-employee relationships(loophealth,2023).

According to the Una Lawlor (2017),Conflict can happen in any environment, and the workplace is certainly no different. Disputes between employees or a direct disagreement between an employee and business owner are situations that can occur frequently. An effective way of managing conflict is vital to the continued health of your company.

One of the biggest issues is how the two parties talk to each other, or whether they talk at all. If there is not an easy way for the two parties to communicate and have their issues heard, the conflict can turn into something much worse. This can result in poor company morale or the termination of a team member.

Consider using a system that allows for consistent, efficient communication between team members and insist that this is the way they must communicate if a conflict arises. When you make this a policy, you can avoid gossip and misunderstandings. You can also ensure that employees always feel that their issues are heard.

3.Annual Leave Disputes

Figure4:Annual Leave

Do your employees know that the company’s leave policy is? Are you sure your policy is in accordance with state and federal laws? If your answer is no to either of these questions and you are not currently using leave management software, you could open the door to annual leave disputes. Consider leave management software that helps you create a legal and transparent leave policy that leaves no room for dispute. Provide every employee with easy access to this policy. This type of software can also help your employees talk with HR managers about leave requests and adjustments (Una Lawlor,2017).

Annual leaves are another delicate issue that can end up in disputes. When mismanaged, annual leave issues can negatively impact your business operations. Yes, annual leaves are significant to the employees for many reasons - it is a way to reduce stress levels, promote motivation within the business, and increase productivity (leaveboard.com,2022).

4.Timekeeping and Attendance Issues

According to the leaveboard.com(2022),Attendance issues have become a rampant problem in most workplaces. You may find some employees coming to work late, while others even fail to show up at all, or a buddy punching covering up for them.
Moreover, most managers fail to call out employees, maybe because they don’t want to be “that guy” in the company. However, lateness and absenteeism without compelling reasons should not be tolerated.
Timekeeping and attendance issues are common, and you can eliminate many of them by utilizing employee self-service software. Allowing employees to keep track of their time and communicate about attendance issues right from their smart devices reduces the chances for conflict and provides them a handy benefit.

Figure5:Attendance Tracker

Timekeeping and attendance issues are common, and you can eliminate many of them by utilizing employee self-service software. Allowing employees to keep track of their time and communicate about attendance issues right from their smart devices reduces the chances for conflict and provides them a handy benefit. Having an effective employee relations plan in place will help you in numerous ways. You can avoid federal wage and hour violations, promote safety in the workplace, assist with schedule management, and give team members an easy way to communicate. This is an excellent way to ensure you promote an efficient and engaging work environment for your employees (Una Lawlor,2017).

5.Workplace Safety 

Figure6: Work Safety

Ensuring a safe employee working environment is critical for employee well-being and productivity. As a business owner, the safety and well-being of your employees should be a top priority. Workplace injuries or accidents can not only harm your employees but can also have significant financial and legal repercussions for your company. Therefore, promoting a safe employee working environment is critical, regardless of the industry you are in. Further, when employees feel unsafe at work, it can negatively impact their job satisfaction and may even result in high turnover rates. Additionally, workplace injuries or accidents can be costly for the organization, leading to compensation claims and legal liabilities(loophealth,2023).

CONCLUSION

Even the best of businesses encounter employee relations issues on their quest to success. However, the way you handle such issues can make or break your business. In fact, statistics prove that organizations that solve such issues right away and invest in employee engagements have a 91% chance to retain their employees and become more productive. As a business owner or manager, you have the responsibility to prevent such issues before happening and address them professionally when they occur before they escalate to become a significant problem.

REFERENCES

Teamloop. (2023). employee-relations-challenges. Retrieved April 02, 2024, from oophealth.com: https://www.loophealth.com/post/employee-relations-challenges

 Lawlor, U. (2017, February 20). most-common-employee-relations-issues-how-to-handle-them. Retrieved April 03, 2024, from medium.com: https://medium.com/@Advance_Systems/5-most-common-employee-relations-issues-how-to-handle-them-f31368d6b14b

Leaveboard. (2022). employee-relations. Retrieved April 03, 2024, from Leaveboard.com: https://leaveboard.com/employee-relations

Figure1    :    Employee Relation Issues

Figure2    :    Pay Raises

Figure3    :    Conflict Resolution

Figure4    :    Annual Leave

Figure5    :    Attendance Tracker

Figure6    :    Work Safety

Source     :     You Tube(2020)